I recently interviewed Nikki Brooks, who lives in Boston, England. She was born in Canada, and her father is from England. She has lived in Nicaragua, England, and various parts of Canada and the USA. Nikki has been many interesting places, and she has also had many interesting experiences. She loves to travel, and will keep traveling. She has been my best friend for a long time, and she has a balanced view of travel. Here are the questions I asked her and her answers.

•    How old are you? I am 14 and will be 15 in July.

•    Do you like to travel? Where have you traveled? I love traveling!! It's sooo fun to see different cultures and places. I've gone lots of places!! I have been to Canada (Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, and Ontario), USA (Florida, South Carolina, New York, Massachusetts, and Maine) Nicaragua, Corn Island (an Island off of Nicaragua), and England.

•    How old were you when you moved to Nicaragua? How long did you live there? I was 10, and I turned 11 while I was there.

•    What was your favorite thing about Nicaragua? And your least favorite thing? Tough one... Favorite thing was probably the really cool fruits!! And all the experiences I had there!! (Like zip lining and swimming in an inactive Volcano!!). Least favorite, I think, was lack of security. Some of the people there had an idea that they could steal things from you, because you were white and some people thought that that automatically meant that you had a lot of money.

•    How long have you lived in England and what do you like about it? Not long, we just moved and have been here for 3 months. The things I love the most are the, well you'll think I’m a real stick in the mud for this but, I love the history here and all the really old castles! But I also love the food! I’m a sucker for fish and chips!!

•    What is your favorite place in the world? Favorite place out all that I’ve been would be here in England I think! But also just wherever my family is, I’m happy there!

•    Do you have any trips planned? If so, where? Well, we are working on one right now, maybe Greece! And we will go to Italy eventually and as well Scotland and Ireland!!

Thank you Nikki, that was very interesting. And I definitely don’t think Nikki is a stick in the mud! I love history, too. 

I think that travel can change someone’s life. When you see different places and cultures, you can choose the good and the bad to make your life better. It can help you realize that you don’t need everything to be happy. I can’t wait to go on vacation again! I had culture shock in Miami! I just wasn’t used to seeing that kind of culture anymore. It was a really different culture than here; the people were much richer than I’m used to. I can’t wait to go travel again.

International experiences are very useful. When you go to different places, you can see many different job opportunities. Like here in Ecuador, you could work in making bricks or in a small little Tienda (shop or store). I am so happy I have had, and continue to have, the privilege of having international experiences.

Drew Haines is a member of the Youth Travel Blogging Mentorship Program.

All photos courtesy and copyright Drew Haines